The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1887-01-08

parison with those in his immediate
neighborhood. It was benjamin
Disraosi. Set in . frame of ron gray
hair and whiskers, and beaming as
benevolently a. Mr.. Pickwick, l Tec0g-
nized, from its likeness to the pictures
had seen, the open, handsome countc-
nance of John Bright Not FAR from
him was man who matched the great
Libcralist in genius and devotion to the
cause of reform, the sturdy and indefa-
tigable Golden, and few seats below.
rivaling in plac;dity the expression of
the philosophers OF the Birmingham
school, his arms folded. his feet crossed
and his eyes partially closed. as if in
revery. half reclined the peoples
William. He had no occasion to speak
that evening, and. unlike many Of the
members of our own House of Commons,
signalized this absence of any reason
to open his mouth by keeping pro-
foundly silent.
Two nights afterward beheld him
under very different circumstances.
An animated debate had brought him
to his feet To hear and see Gladstone
had been one of the dreams of my boy
hood. one of those dreams that l never
expected to realize. Macaulay had
lasbed him into my affections. His
criticisms inclined me to think that the
same prejudice and imagination which
make the History of England from the
Accession of James III" : warning to
students who prefer accuracy of state
ment to rhetorical finish and splendor
of diction, might have distorted the
views of the essayist on Church and
State Macaulay was his enemy and
/ loved him .'for the enemies he had
made" Uuder the influence of this
sentiment first listened to the prince
of English debaters and my opinion
was then, and is still. that the man who
forms any conception of Mr.. Glad
stone power as an orator. either from
reading the reports of his speeches or
from descriptions of the effect which
his spoken words have upon those who
hear them, forms conception which
the test of experience will prove to be
wholly superficial and inadequate.
Upon the occasion to which refer he
held the attention of his auditors with
out break in speech lasting over an
hour. Three things fix themselves
Intellectually upon the memory-his
noble presence. his wonderful voice
and the astonishing range of his vocab-
ulary. / had heard Webster, Clay,
Everett, Winthrop, Phillips, Douglass.
Cass, Sumner, Chase and nearly al the
prominent members of the succeeding
school Of American orators. but never
heard voice the tones Of which so
affected me az Mr.. Gladstone's did.
1t is as impossible to describe them as
it is to. analyze the spell they throw
over you. You are conscious of the
fascination, you listen entranced, you
feel that the orators power spans the
whole gamut Of human emotions, but
when the voice ceases, when the lights
of the great hall are out and y0u have
turned away again to dull earth and
commonplace. the mystery OF the con-
quest battles your every effort to ex-
plain or account for it. HIwere asked
for possible key to the charm should
say it would be found in that element
Of his oratory which comes nearest to
what we call persuasiveness. There
are various kinds Of persuasiveness.
and that which is Gladstone's kind
differs from everv other kind with
which YOU are familiar. He would not
be Gladstone If it didn't His manner
in the House is almost always that Of a
man who Is converting with Won. He
never declaims. His gestures are easy
and natural. Often with his foot raised
upon the round Of chair. his left ell
bow resting on his knee. and his body
inclined slightly forward, he delivers
those speeches which seem to the
reader the utterances of one whose &C.
ton at times must have been vigorous.
if not dramatic But Mr.. Gladstone is
above the need of dramatic auxiliaries.
They would interfere with the effect he